chaîne thématique

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Cultural Note: Chaînes de télévision

In all, France has 6 terrestrial TV channels. There are three state-owned channels, France 2, France 3 and France 5 where programmes are financed mostly by revenue from the TV licences paid by all TV owners, as well as four privately-owned channels. These are TF1 (télévision française 1) which has an obligation to ensure that 50% of its programmes are of French origin; Canal Plus, a subscription-operated channel which requires the use of a decoder except during brief periods when programmes are not scrambled (i.e. when they are broadcast en clair ); Arte (a Franco-German cultural channel) which broadcasts programmes on the same frequency as France 5 but at different times of the day; and finally M6, a popular commercial channel.